Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

As I browse through other food blogs and click from page to page on such sites as Taste Spotting and Food Gawker, it is hard not to notice the use of butternut squash lately.  There are pasta dishes, stews, curries, soups and more, who knew there were so many avenues butternut squash could take.  It is for this reason, that I am slightly embarrassed by my  soup.  It is not ingenious or breaking any barriers, it is only simple, I roast butternut squash with some garlic cloves until they are slightly caramelized and sweet.  The squash and garlic get blended into vegetable stock with a hint of thyme and then the soup is finished with a splash of cream.  The final result, silky and smooth butternut squash soup, perfect for a light lunch or dinner.

By the way, this is just a process, feel free to replace the butternut squash with pumpkin, acorn squash, potato, carrots or a mixture of vegetables.

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

1 medium butternut squash, peeled and cut into large cubes

2 unpeeled garlic cloves

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 sprigs of thyme, divided

4 cups vegetable stock (low sodium)

1/4 cup cream

salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Take one sprig of thyme and remove the leaves by pulling gently with fingers from the bottom of the stems to the top, then use a knife to roughly chop the leaves that have come off the stem.

On a baking sheet toss cubed butternut squash and unpeeled garlic cloves with olive oil and the roughly chopped thyme leaves, then lightly sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Roast in the oven for 25 minutes.

Just before the squash is done roasting, in a large soup pot, heat up the vegetable stock with the remaining sprig of thyme.  Simmer for about 5 minutes.  Add the roasted squash and garlic (remove peel first) to the stock.  Use an immersion blender or stand blender to blend the mixture to a smooth and silky consistency.  Finish with a splash of cream and season to your liking.

Tagged as: autumn, butternut squash, fall, soup, squash